Was traditional in that many guests were utterly spannered by the early hours, and I was certainly one of them. The birthday girl was magnificent as always and her party reflected her. It was a grand time. Thank you november_girl!

We stayed where the party was, at the Hotel Du Vin, an excellent place with gorgeous showers. On Sunday morning as perhaps the least challenged of our party, in so much as my head was clear and only my stomach was rebelling, I was the one sent out to get hangover cures and found myself, not only wandering the town centre on Sunday morning, but quite liking it. This was such a shock to my system, I could only conclude I was still drunk. I'm not used to liking Brum.

The problem with the city is that to a certain extent it gets defined by its roads. I used to associate it with horrible traffic and rather down at heel buildings... Brum centre on Sunday morning, with its trams and pedestrian areas, and lights and markets was much more cheerful than my memory had allowed for. Of course, it could be argued that everywhere polishes up for Christmas, but it all felt lighter than I remember. We were close to the Cathedral too, a very interesting building. I wanted to go in and have a look at the windows properly, but I was too dedicated in my quest for troglodyte repair kit.

These three days have been quite extraordinary. There has been painful news, there has been joyful news. And there is today.